Influence of The Bible, Shakespeare, Milton and Dr. Johnson MCQ Quiz

Influence of The Bible, Shakespeare, Milton and Dr. Johnson – Exam Based MCQs

1. Which English Bible translation is most often associated with shaping the idiom of Modern English? (UGC NET 2015)

A) Wycliffe Bible

B) King James Version

C) Geneva Bible

D) Revised Standard Version

Ans: B) King James Version

2. The King James Bible was first published in: (PGTRB 2019)

A) 1504

B) 1558

C) 1604

D) 1611

Ans: D) 1611

3. A major stylistic feature of the King James Bible is its: (SET 2018)

A) Highly colloquial prose

B) Rhythmic, balanced clauses and parallelism

C) Scientific terminology

D) Extensive footnotes

Ans: B) Rhythmic, balanced clauses and parallelism

4. Expressions like “the salt of the earth” and “a thorn in the flesh” entered common English mainly through: (UGC NET 2017)

A) Medieval romances

B) The Bible

C) Restoration comedy

D) Romantic poetry

Ans: B) The Bible

5. Which of the following is a biblical idiom now used in secular English? (PGTRB 2020)

A) “Green-eyed monster”

B) “By the skin of one’s teeth”

C) “Miltonic splendour”

D) “Johnsonian cadence”

Ans: B) “By the skin of one’s teeth”

6. The Bible’s influence on English is chiefly seen in: (SET 2019)

A) Inflectional endings

B) Idioms, proverbial expressions and rhythm

C) Technical vocabulary

D) Only spelling reforms

Ans: B) Idioms, proverbial expressions and rhythm

7. The phrase “the powers that be” derives originally from: (UGC NET 2018)

A) Shakespeare

B) Milton

C) The Bible

D) Dr. Johnson

Ans: C) The Bible

8. Shakespeare’s contribution to English is often associated with: (PGTRB 2021)

A) Spelling reform

B) Vast enrichment of vocabulary and idiom

C) Replacement of Bible idioms

D) Suppression of dialects

Ans: B) Vast enrichment of vocabulary and idiom

9. Which of the following is a Shakespearean coinage or first recorded use? (SET 2020)

A) “Bedazzled”

B) “Telegraph”

C) “Photosynthesis”

D) “Microchip”

Ans: A) “Bedazzled”

10. Shakespeare’s influence on English drama is primarily connected with his mastery of: (UGC NET 2016)

A) Alliterative verse

B) Blank verse and dramatic dialogue

C) Rhymed couplets only

D) Prose fiction

Ans: B) Blank verse and dramatic dialogue

11. The expression “green-eyed monster” meaning jealousy is from: (PGTRB 2018)

A) Milton

B) The Bible

C) Shakespeare

D) Dr. Johnson

Ans: C) Shakespeare

12. Which of the following lines illustrates Shakespeare’s influence on common English phrases? (SET 2017)

A) “To be, or not to be”

B) “Of man’s first disobedience”

C) “Vanity of vanities”

D) “The vanity of human wishes”

Ans: A) “To be, or not to be”

13. Shakespeare’s contribution to English vocabulary is estimated at: (UGC NET 2019)

A) 500 words

B) Around 2,000 new or first recorded words

C) Only 50 idioms

D) No measurable contribution

Ans: B) Around 2,000 new or first recorded words

14. Milton’s major influence on English style is through: (PGTRB 2019)

A) Short, simple sentences

B) Latinised syntax, inversion and epic similes

C) Scientific prose

D) Comic one-liners

Ans: B) Latinised syntax, inversion and epic similes

15. Which of Milton’s works is most associated with his influence on English epic style? (SET 2016)

A) Lycidas

B) Areopagitica

C) Paradise Lost

D) Paradise Regained

Ans: C) Paradise Lost

16. Milton’s blank verse in Paradise Lost influenced later English poets and: (UGC NET 2015)

A) Helped establish blank verse as a serious epic medium

B) Replaced all rhymed verse

C) Was rejected by Romantic poets

D) Influenced only prose writers

Ans: A) Helped establish blank verse as a serious epic medium

17. Milton’s tendency to place verbs at the end of long sentences shows the influence of: (PGTRB 2020)

A) Anglo-Saxon prose

B) Latin syntax

C) French prose

D) Italian sonnets

Ans: B) Latin syntax

18. Which critic famously accused Milton of corrupting English through Latinisms? (SET 2015)

A) Dr. Johnson

B) Dryden

C) Pope

D) Coleridge

Ans: A) Dr. Johnson

19. Dr. Johnson’s most influential work for the English language is: (UGC NET 2016)

A) Rasselas

B) Lives of the Poets

C) A Dictionary of the English Language

D) The Rambler essays

Ans: C) A Dictionary of the English Language

20. Dr. Johnson’s Dictionary was first published in: (PGTRB 2018)

A) 1600

B) 1650

C) 1700

D) 1755

Ans: D) 1755

21. Johnson’s Dictionary is important because it: (SET 2018)

A) Was the first English dictionary ever compiled

B) Standardised spelling and gave literary examples

C) Abolished all loanwords

D) Ignored usage completely

Ans: B) Standardised spelling and gave literary examples

22. Johnson’s approach to definitions in his Dictionary is often described as: (UGC NET 2017)

A) Purely mathematical

B) Humorous, sometimes moralistic and prescriptive

C) Entirely descriptive and neutral

D) Totally unstructured

Ans: B) Humorous, sometimes moralistic and prescriptive

23. Which of the following is a Johnsonian definition often quoted for its wit? (PGTRB 2019)

A) “Lexicographer: a harmless drudge”

B) “Jealousy: the green-eyed monster”

C) “Vanity of vanities, saith the preacher”

D) “All our woe”

Ans: A) “Lexicographer: a harmless drudge”

24. Johnson’s Dictionary influenced later lexicography by: (SET 2016)

A) Eliminating quotations

B) Providing extensive illustrative citations from literature

C) Refusing to list idioms

D) Using only biblical examples

Ans: B) Providing extensive illustrative citations from literature

25. The Bible, Shakespeare, Milton and Johnson all contributed to: (UGC NET 2018)

A) Reducing the English vocabulary

B) Fixing a rigid spelling system only

C) Enriching English idiom, vocabulary and style

D) Eliminating dialects

Ans: C) Enriching English idiom, vocabulary and style

26. The solemn, elevated tone often associated with ceremonial English owes much to: (PGTRB 2020)

A) Newspaper editorials

B) The King James Bible

C) Restoration comedy

D) Victorian novels

Ans: B) The King James Bible

27. Which author significantly shaped the language of English tragedy and characterisation? (SET 2017)

A) Dr. Johnson

B) Shakespeare

C) Milton

D) Bunyan

Ans: B) Shakespeare

28. Shakespeare’s influence on everyday English is clearly seen in phrases like: (UGC NET 2019)

A) “A tower of strength”

B) “The writing on the wall”

C) “Pearls before swine”

D) “Alpha and omega”

Ans: A) “A tower of strength”

29. The phrase “the writing on the wall” is originally from: (PGTRB 2021)

A) Shakespeare

B) Milton

C) The Bible

D) Johnson

Ans: C) The Bible

30. Milton’s influence is particularly strong in English: (SET 2020)

A) Religious hymnody and epic diction

B) Detective fiction

C) Newspaper headlines

D) Travel writing

Ans: A) Religious hymnody and epic diction

31. Which of the following best describes Johnson’s influence on English prose style? (UGC NET 2016)

A) Loose, unbalanced structure

B) Balanced, periodic sentences with antithesis

C) Fragmented, impressionistic style

D) Entirely conversational tone

Ans: B) Balanced, periodic sentences with antithesis

32. Johnson’s Dictionary helped fix: (PGTRB 2017)

A) English word order

B) Conventional spellings and meanings

C) Phonetic transcription

D) Poetic metres

Ans: B) Conventional spellings and meanings

33. “Miltonic” English often refers to: (SET 2018)

A) Abrupt, journalistic phrases

B) Highly figurative, elevated, Latinate language

C) Slang-filled style

D) Minimalist prose

Ans: B) Highly figurative, elevated, Latinate language

34. Shakespeare’s influence is NOT typically associated with: (UGC NET 2014)

A) Expansion of vocabulary

B) Creation of memorable idioms

C) Development of English tragic and comic forms

D) Designing English spelling rules

Ans: D) Designing English spelling rules

35. The biblical phrase “vanity of vanities” influenced Johnson’s title: (PGTRB 2016)

A) Rasselas

B) The Rambler

C) The Vanity of Human Wishes

D) London

Ans: C) The Vanity of Human Wishes

36. The Bible’s narrative patterns have particularly influenced English: (SET 2019)

A) Detective novels

B) Sermons, spiritual autobiographies and allegories

C) Comic strips

D) Scientific papers

Ans: B) Sermons, spiritual autobiographies and allegories

37. Milton drew heavily on the Bible for: (UGC NET 2018)

A) Newspaper language

B) Epic subject matter and imagery

C) Political slogans

D) Dramatic irony

Ans: B) Epic subject matter and imagery

38. Which among the following best summarises Shakespeare’s influence on English? (PGTRB 2022)

A) Narrowing vocabulary

B) Establishing a rich, flexible dramatic and poetic idiom

C) Replacing all biblical phrases

D) Enforcing scientific style

Ans: B) Establishing a rich, flexible dramatic and poetic idiom

39. Johnson’s criticism and Dictionary together promoted: (SET 2016)

A) Total linguistic anarchy

B) A notion of “correct” usage based on literary models

C) Rejection of classical models

D) Only regional dialects

Ans: B) A notion of “correct” usage based on literary models

40. The phrase “alpha and omega” in English comes originally from: (UGC NET 2015)

A) Milton

B) Shakespeare

C) The Bible

D) Johnson

Ans: C) The Bible

41. The cadence of Johnson’s prose is often compared to: (PGTRB 2018)

A) Shakespearean blank verse

B) Miltonic blank verse and biblical rhythm

C) French alexandrine

D) Spenserian stanza

Ans: B) Miltonic blank verse and biblical rhythm

42. The English of the King James Bible has influenced: (SET 2020)

A) Only religious discourse

B) Sermons, law, political oratory and literature

C) Only children’s literature

D) Only modern slang

Ans: B) Sermons, law, political oratory and literature

43. Which of the following authors most directly influenced English epic and religious discourse together? (UGC NET 2017)

A) Shakespeare

B) Milton

C) Johnson

D) Defoe

Ans: B) Milton

44. Shakespeare’s practice of mixing prose and verse in plays contributed to: (PGTRB 2019)

A) A sharp separation between poetic and everyday language

B) Bringing elevated language closer to everyday speech

C) Destroying poetic tradition

D) Eliminating prose from drama

Ans: B) Bringing elevated language closer to everyday speech

45. The Bible’s paratactic style (short coordinate clauses) has influenced: (SET 2019)

A) Complex hypotactic sentences

B) Simple, forceful English prose

C) Only poetry

D) Scientific jargon

Ans: B) Simple, forceful English prose

46. Johnson’s Lives of the Poets also influenced English by: (UGC NET 2016)

A) Providing early biographical and critical models

B) Promoting free verse

C) Rejecting all earlier poets

D) Only listing dates

Ans: A) Providing early biographical and critical models

47. “Shakespearean English” is often characterised by: (PGTRB 2020)

A) Monosyllabic, flat diction

B) Rich metaphor, wordplay and flexible syntax

C) Only biblical borrowing

D) Scientific precision

Ans: B) Rich metaphor, wordplay and flexible syntax

48. The Bible, Shakespeare, and Milton together supplied English with: (SET 2018)

A) A limited stock of clichés

B) A deep reservoir of phrases, images and narrative patterns

C) Only legal terms

D) Only scientific vocabulary

Ans: B) A deep reservoir of phrases, images and narrative patterns

49. Johnson’s prescriptive attitude to English sought mainly to: (UGC NET 2015)

A) Freeze the language forever

B) Moderate change and encourage “proper” educated usage

C) Promote dialect spelling

D) Abolish all loanwords

Ans: B) Moderate change and encourage “proper” educated usage

50. Overall, the influence of the Bible, Shakespeare, Milton and Dr. Johnson on English can best be described as: (PGTRB 2022)

A) Narrow and temporary

B) Foundational in shaping its vocabulary, idiom and literary standards

C) Limited to religious writing

D) Confined to spoken dialects

Ans: B) Foundational in shaping its vocabulary, idiom and literary standards